Walther's Twin Tavern is twice the fun

Walther's Twin Tavern has opened in North Canton. It's an off-shoot of the popular Canton restaurant and operated by twin sisters Tara and Tana Walther.

Edd Pritchard GateHouse Media Ohio @epritchardREP

NORTH CANTON After several sputters and false starts, Walther's Cafe has a second location in Stark County.

Walther's Twin Tavern is open at 440 Applegrove St. NW. It will feature much of the Walther's Cafe menu with some twists that twin sisters Terra and Tana Walther believe will fit in with diners in the North Canton area.

The sisters represent the fourth generation of the Walther family to manage the family restaurant business.

Terra has been working in the restaurants since high school. She started busing tables at Walther's Cafe and moved to hostess, waitress and then bartender. She became manager six years ago.

It's been about six years since the Walthers started seeking a second location.

The family considered a site in Plain Township along Market Avenue N., but a request to change the zoning for the property was denied. After acquiring the Applegrove property, the Walthers needed residents to approve alcohol sales. Once that hurdle was cleared, the property had to be tested for past coal mining. Then came financing challenges and changes to the building site.

"There were a lot of hiccups," Terra Walther said.

The goal was to create a neighborhood restaurant, and the family is confident they succeeded.

The new location has a similar feel to the Canton location at 1836 Maple Ave. NE. There is a dining room and tavern area that seats 116 (28 seats at the bar). The banquet room has space for 60. There is a patio and area with bocce courts.

There's a sports theme, and plenty of televisions for watching the Indians, Cavs, Browns and Buckeyes. Patrons also can play Keno and other Ohio Lottery games.

Menu changes include additional salad offerings, some larger steaks and several healthy options, Terra Walther said. With the new locations "we're able to try more new things," she said.

It will be a few weeks before the restaurant is offering its full menu, she said. Employees still are being hired and trained.

Customers can come for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Hours are 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. on Friday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday.

The location offers carry-out service — Terra Walther recommends calling ahead to order — and there is a pick-up window.

Walther's dates back to 1914 when Henry "Heinie" Walther opened a confectionery at 1836 Maple St. NE. When Prohibition ended, Walther got a liquor license and opened a tavern in 1933. His son, Carl, took over the operation in 1961, and Jan Walther became the third generation owner when he took over for his father in 1981.

In addition to the twin sisters, other family members are involved with the new restaurant.

"Mom and dad can't stay out of here," Terra Walther said. Jan Walther still stays busy at the Canton location, she said.

As for the restaurant's name, Walther's Twin Tavern, well twins run in the family. Terra and Tana's grandmother, Evelyn Walther, is a twin. And Tana is the mother of 6-year-old twins.

TimkenSteel milestone

It only has been three years since TimkenSteel split from Timken Co. and became a publicly traded company.

But this year marks the 100th year that steel carrying the Timken name has been made at the Harrison Mill.

Concerned about possible supply shortages during World War I, H.H. Timken decided the company should make the steel for its bearings. Work to design and build a steel mill along Harrison Street SW started in 1915 and the first steel used by the company was made it 1917.

TimkenSteel has been reminding customers and investors of the centennial. It also has marked the anniversary with small celebrations. Last Thursday, on the eve of TimkenSteel's third anniversary, employees gathered at lunch for a celebration that included a cake cut by the company's two longest serving employees, Craig Rupert and Bev Beckett.

Beckett, who just passed 47 years of service, has worked in the industrial relations department and knew that one other employee had more time that she did.

Rupert, who is in technical services assisting customers, has 47 1/2 years with the company. He learned last week that he ranked as the company's longest running employee.

"It just kind of surprised me," Rupert said. "It snuck up just like everything else in life does."

While Beckett joined the company after graduating Louisville High School, Rupert — a Glenwood High School graduate — served two years in the Air Force before joining Timken. He has worked in the steel side of the business the past 16 years.

Not surprisingly, both called Timken — and now TimkenSteel — a great place to work. But their tenure will end soon. Beckett expects to retire on June 8, 2018, which will be her 48th anniversary with the company. Rupert expects to retire within the coming year.

Happy birthday ATM

The automated teller machine marked 50 years last week.

Barclays Bank in the United Kingdom installed the first machine at one of its branches in the suburbs of London. Customers used a printed piece of paper to withdraw cash. Other European banks also were developing similar machines and soon had them in place. Chemical Bank debuted the first ATM in the U.S. in 1969.

Diebold took note when the machines rolled out. In November 1970, the company teamed with two British companies, Chubb & Sons Lock & Safe and Smith Industries, to market Chubb Automatic Banking System machines in the the United States. By 1973, Diebold was developing its own ATMs and the company installed its first Total Automatic Banking System 500 unit in May 1974.

In Europe, a German company called Nixdorf installed its first ATM at Cologne Savings Bank in 1978.

These days Diebold Nixdorf has one-third of the estimated 3 million ATMs installed used around the world. Plastic cards replaced the paper withdrawal slips. Soon smartphones and biometrics will be used to activate the machines.

Down the road, Diebold Nixdorf hopes to leverage the channel the ATM created and remake the company as a services and software provider, spokesman Mike Jacobsen said.

Reach Edd at 330-580-8484 or edd.pritchard@cantonrep.com

On Twitter: @epritchardREP

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